KNUST CLASH: Management using an ostrich, irrelevant approach to deal with the problem - YAFO

The Young Africans for Opportunities (YAFO) has described the decision by the management of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) to abolish the Junior Common Room (JCR) system of hall management by students following the recent clash between some students as an ostrich approach.

YAFO also believes the indefinite suspension of hall week and SRC week celebrations, dismissal, rustication, and withdrawal of students who participate/organize morale/procession and harbouring of alumni in the hall of residence is not only irrelevant but an ostrich approach that does not solve the problem at hand.

According to a statement issued by YAFO, while they condemn the student clash, the school’s approach will not solve the problem.

Adding that, the decision has harmed other halls that were not involved in the clash between the two halls.

The statement recalled similar incidents from previous years and questioned whether the approach used resolved any problems.

"The University Council has succeeded in separating students’ organizations and various associations from their funds and deepening centralized planning to the neglect of students’ interests. This approach has weakened the participation of students and weakened students’ leadership allowing top-down implementation of decision-making. It is highly dissatisfactory, that the University Council could not identify the root cause of the violent clash by its fact-finding committee but seized the opportunity to increase its dominance over the rights of students to have their representative for Hall management,” the statement said.

According to them, the school administration should identify and address the underlying cause of the problem.

"We, therefore, advise the University Council to find the root cause of the violence, publish the outcome and deal with it and not to be reactive and speculative in decision making. Also, the council should take a conscious step to increase participatory decision-making to make and build a sense of entitlement and responsibility for the actions of students.”

Read the full statement below

THE UNIVERSITY COUNCIL OF THE KWAME NKRUMAH UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY (KNUST) HAS ONLY UNDERTAKEN AN OSTRICH APPROACH TO CURBING VIOLENT CLASHES AMONG STUDENTS

The Council has used restrictions and ban to try to curb violent clashes yet has yielded no results.

In the 2018/19 academic year, the two traditional male halls, University Hall and Unity Hall, were converted into a mixed hall to curb the issue of violence between these two halls but yielded no results. Hence there is no guarantee that the current decision of the University council to abolish the JCR system of hall management by students and the suspension of Hall week and SRC week celebrations going to solve the problem at hand.

The ad hoc decision by the University Council has punished several other halls including Queen Elizabeth Hall, Africa Hall, Republic Hall, and Independence Hall, whose JCR system of Hall management by students has been peaceful and served as a training ground for leadership among students. Why deny these Halls that do not have a record of indulging in violence during their Hall week celebrations the privilege to have their hall week celebrations and also the JCR system of Hall management by students?

The University Council has succeeded in separating students’ organizations and various associations from their funds and deepening centralized planning to the neglect of students’ interests. This approach has weakened the participation of students and weakened students’ leadership allowing top-down implementation of decision-making. It is highly dissatisfactory, that the University Council could not identify the root cause of the violent clash by its fact-finding committee but seized the opportunity to increase its dominance over the rights of students to have their representative for Hall management.

We, therefore, advise the University Council to find the root cause of the violence, publish the outcome and deal with it and not to be reactive and speculative in decision making. Also, the council should take a conscious step to increase participatory decision-making to make and build a sense of entitlement and responsibility for the actions of students.